Two Rings
by princessjoey630
Summary: Sequel to ‘Return’. Ziva and Tony are getting married, but when past faces show up, things get more difficult. Tiva. Rated T to be sure.
1. Busted

DISCLAIMER for all chapters in this story: I own nothing. If I did, Vance wouldn't even exist, Jenny would be alive, and Tony and Ziva would be together.

This is the official sequel to 'Return', and is set six months after the last chapter of that.

* * *

Chapter 1 – Busted

Ziva David was sitting at her desk, navigating her way around ''. She was trying to get ideas for her upcoming wedding, but she couldn't decide on anything.

Tony DiNozzo was sitting at his desk, watching his fiancée with interest. She was concentrating very hard on what she was doing.

"Probie!" he hissed at his other co-worker.

Timothy McGee looked up from his computer. "What?"

"What's Ziva doing?" Tony said quietly. Ziva didn't even notice. She was intrigued with the many types of fastenings that a dress could have.

"I have no idea. Why don't you ask her?" McGee said irritably.

Tony got up and crept silently around so he was behind Ziva's wall. He peeked over and saw her computer screen.

"Your Perfect Wedding Dress dot com?" he said curiously.

Ziva turned to face him. "What?"

Tony grinned. "I thought you said you weren't even going to look at dresses until we were closer to the wedding."

"I...just...got...sidetracked from what I was doing," Ziva tried, but Tony laughed.

"Busted."

"Shut up," she said, punching him in the arm.

"Decide on anything?" Tony said quickly.

"Yes. Models should put on more weight."

Tony laughed.

"DiNozzo! What are you doing?" Gibbs said as he walked into the squadroom, clutching a cup of coffee. Tony scurried back to his desk.

Ziva poked her tongue at him. "Nice," he whispered.

"Wedding plans?" Gibbs asked Ziva.

"Uh. Yeah. Just getting ideas," Ziva said, turning away from her computer again.

"How was your weekend Boss? Boat still working?" Tony asked. Gibbs had gotten them the weekend off, and he had spent it taking his boat out for a sail.

"Works well. And no, I don't want to know what you did on your weekend, DiNozzo," he added as Tony opened his mouth.

Tony remained silent.

"Boss, downstairs reception called. Someone's coming up," McGee said, hanging up his phone. Gibbs went over to the elevator.

"Huh. Cool. That's exactly how we found out you were coming back," Tony said to Ziva.

"What?"

"When you got back from Miami. Downstairs reception called and said someone was coming up here."

Ziva turned back to her computer. "Oh, I like this dress," she said.

The elevator door opened, and a man came out and began talking to Gibbs.

"Hey, who's that?" Tony said.

"No idea. Never seen him before," McGee replied.

"Ziva, do you know him?"

Ziva didn't even look. "Tony, do you like this dress?" she said, turning her screen so he could see.

"Yeah. It's nice. Who is that? He looks irritated."

Gibbs came back over to them with the mystery man in tow. "Here she is," he said, stopping at Ziva's desk.

Ziva finally looked up. "Oh my God."

* * *

A/N Please review!! I'm really excited about this story!!

I don't actually have anything to do with "Your Perfect Wedding Dress dot com". I just made it up and then found out it's a real site. Oops.

I might not be updating as quickly as I usually do. Usually I publish chapters when I have written the next one as well (if that makes sense). At this point I haven't finished chapter 2. I will soon. :)


	2. Just Stop

A/N Sorry it took a while to update. I was having issues with writing. Couldn't think of anything.

* * *

Chapter 2 – Just Stop

"What?" Tony said, looking at Ziva with concern. She remained silent.

"Ziva! _Hishtagata_? You are engaged? Again?" the man said, looking angrily at her.

"_Aba, savlanut! Atah sa'arah b'kos mayim!"_ Ziva shot back, standing up and walking to the window with the mystery man. They continued to talk very fast, the word 'American' coming up frequently.

"Ok, that was in Hebrew and English. Anyone good at translating?" Tony said. Gibbs head slapped him.

"Family matter, DiNozzo," he said, taking his place back at his desk.

"What? That guy…him…Ziva's family?"

"Father. Kemuel David." Gibbs said.

"That's Deputy Director David?" McGee said in awe. "Huh. Now that I think about it, Ziva does look a bit like him."

* * *

"What are you doing here, _Aba_?" Ziva said, looking back over at her co-workers.

"You are engaged, Ziva. Again. I never even met the first man," Kemuel said.

"Are you still following me? Is that how you found out?" Ziva asked quietly.

"That is beside the point. Officer Bashan and I spoke about my surveillance on you after the Iranians framed you. I have diminished it slightly, but it is still present."

"You did not answer my question, _Aba_. How did you find out about my engagement?" Ziva said slowly.

"Neddie told me when I spoke to her a week ago," Kemuel said shrewdly.

"Aunt Neddie?"

"Yes. She thought I would already know. She was quite surprised when I told her I did not."

Ziva ran her hand through her hair. "I no longer have any obligation to tell you anything. You terminated me from Mossad almost 6 years ago."

"You have an obligation as my daughter, Ziva, to tell me what is going on in your life."

"Do not talk to me about family obligation," Ziva hissed. "If you cared about family as much as you say you do you would still have three children, not just one."

Kemuel became furious. "Do not blame me for their deaths."

"Sure, Ari was against you for years. But Tali?"

"Ziva-"

"She was 16! You treated her like just another one of your soldiers. Her death is your fault," Ziva said. She went back over to her team. Kemuel followed her.

"Agent Gibbs, I would like to take my daughter out for a while," he said. Ziva rolled her eyes.

"Alright. Two hours," Gibbs said. Ziva glared at him.

"I will meet you downstairs," Kemuel said, walking to the elevator. Ziva went back to her desk and grabbed her bag.

"Everything alright?" Tony asked her.

"I didn't tell him about breaking up with Chris or becoming engaged to you," Ziva said quickly, running after her father.

"Did I hear her say Ari when she was talking to Kemuel?" Tony said, watching her leave.

"She couldn't be talking about Haswari," McGee said thoughtfully. "Could she?"

Gibbs stayed silent. He and Ziva had managed to keep who really killed Ari a secret. They had also managed to hide who his family was. Gibbs wasn't planning on changing the situation now.

"She'll be back later," he said. The other two agents resumed amusing themselves, waiting for a case.

* * *

"Sit, Ziva," Kemuel said. They were in the Head Office at the Washington Mossad Headquarters.

Ziva sat on the couch across the room from her father.

"Why didn't you tell me about Agent DiNozzo?" Kemuel asked, sitting back in his chair.

Ziva grimaced slightly. "Like I told you, _Aba_, I have no obligation to tell you anything. I call at Hanukkah. What else did you expect after terminating me from Mossad?"

"And like I told you, you have family obligation-"

"You really want me to bring up Tali again?"

"Enough about your sister," Kemuel said loudly. He then spoke quietly to his now fuming daughter. "What happened to your first fiancé?"

Ziva knew he'd find out eventually. "We broke up."

"Why?"

"Because he cheated on me, alright? You can go back to Israel now," Ziva snapped, standing up.

Kemuel looked almost sympathetic. "Ziva, I-"

"I am fine, I have moved on, I am happy," Ziva replied. "You have fulfilled your 'obligation' as my father."

"Why are you being so hostile?" Kemuel asked.

Ziva cringed. "I cannot believe you just asked that."

"You should answer the question anyway."

"You were never there. For me, for Ari, for Tali. Never. And then you terminate me from Mossad, which I thought was the only thing you actually liked about me. And then," she added, as he began to protest, "You show up here wanting to know all of my relationship statuses. It's too confusing."

"Ziva, as Deputy Director, I have a lot of work-"

"There you go again, using work as an excuse," Ziva said, pacing the room. "Your work killed Tali!"

"Enough!" Kemuel said loudly, raising his hand to silence her. "Stop mentioning Tali, Ziva. Just stop."

Ziva could see that she must have crossed a line, so she remained quiet.

Her phone rang. "Agent David."

"_Ziva, got a case, we need you," _Tony said.

"Alright."

"_Everything alright?"_

Ziva glanced at Kemuel. "Everything's fine."

"_Alright. Scene is at 6273 Stanson Street."_

"See you soon." Ziva paused. "I love you."

"_I love you too."_

* * *

A/N Please review!!

I'll be updating soon. I have already written Chapter 3 and I am working on Chapter 4.

Squee!!


	3. Scene

* * *

Chapter 3 - Scene

Ziva arrived at the crime scene in a taxi. Tony was waiting for her with an NCIS jacket.

"Thanks," she said, taking it from him. They walked inside.

"What happened?" Ziva asked.

"House belongs to Commander Andrew Rowe. He was shot here. He's on his way to Bethesda," Gibbs said, examining a small pool of blood on the carpet that was next to a smashed glass coffee table.

"Neighbour heard a gunshot, came over to investigate," McGee explained.

"Alright then," Ziva said, slinging her bag down.

Her mobile rang.

"Agent David...hello?" After receiving no response, she hung up.

"Excuse me?" called a voice from the front door. Tony gestured for Ziva to follow him there.

"Hi, I'm Agent DiNozzo, this is Agent David, can we help you?"

"I'm Emmeline Simms, I found Andrew..."

"Oh. Right," Tony said. "Neighbour," he whispered to Ziva.

"I was wondering if Stephanie has been found yet," Emmeline said. Ziva looked at her, confused.

"No, but we're still searching. We'll find her," Tony said reassuringly. He and Ziva went back inside.

"Ok, can someone tell me the full story?" Ziva asked.

"Whole thing took place about two hours ago. Emmeline heard gunshots, came over to investigate. She found Commander Rowe."

"Who's Stephanie?"

"His daughter. The mother was out shopping; she's on her way now," Tony said.

"Gillman's team is searching for Stephanie," Gibbs said.

Ziva nodded and walked behind the couch, where there was a small amount of blood.

Tony followed her. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." She could tell he wanted more information. "We just went to Mossad Headquarters for a while."

"And?"

"We talked."

"Everything alright with you and him?" Tony asked. Ziva just looked at him.

Suddenly they heard some coming noise from upstairs.

"What was that?"

"No idea." They drew their weapons and went to investigate.

* * *

"Clear," Tony whispered as he came out of the bathroom.

"Just the bedroom to go," Ziva replied, and they headed to the end of the hall.

"I'll go in first," she said. "Wait for my signal. Tony nodded.

Ziva crept into the room. The wardrobe door was open and shoes were all over the floor. She went over and looked inside.

There was a little girl, no older than six, huddled in the back corner of the wardrobe, looking terrified.

"Stephanie?" Ziva asked softly. The girl nodded and squeezed her eyes shut.

"It's alright, I'm here to help you," Ziva said. She crouched down so they were level. "I'm Ziva."

Stephanie opened her eyes again.

"Are you hiding?" Ziva said.

Stephanie nodded. "I made all the shoes fall down. Not on purpose though," she added, pointing at the now empty shoe rack above her.

"That explains the noise," Ziva said.

"Ziva?" came Tony's voice from the hallway. "Everything alright?"

"It's alright Tony," Ziva called back. "Come here."

"Is that Stephanie?" Tony said as he saw them sitting on the floor together.

"Yeah. She's fine," Ziva replied.

"I hurt my leg," Stephanie said quietly. She rolled her pants up to reveal a cut on her calf muscle that was bleeding slowly.

"How did you do that?" Ziva asked, getting up so she could carry her downstairs.

"The table broke. I falled over on it."

"Alright. Let's go," Ziva said. Carrying Stephanie on her hip, she followed Tony downstairs.

* * *

"She needs stitches," Gibbs said when Ziva brought Stephanie to him. Tony had gone off to halt the search for the little girl.

"Oh my God!" came a voice from the doorway. A woman with dark brown hair identical to Stephanie's rushed in.

Gibbs stood up. "Who are-"

"I'm Alana Rowe, I got a call saying my husband was….." she faded off when she saw the blood on the carpet. "Oh my God."

"Your husband is in surgery at Bethesda Naval Hospital," Gibbs explained.

"Stephanie?"

"She's here," Ziva said. Alana took Stephanie into her arms.

"She needs to be taken to hospital as well. She cut herself on the glass," Gibbs said, pointing to the shattered table.

"Alright," Alana said. She began walking shakily towards the door.

"Ziva, drive her there," Gibbs said quietly. Ziva nodded and followed Alana and Stephanie out the door.

"She alright?" Gibbs said to Tony.

"She said she was fine," Tony said. Gibbs just looked at him.

* * *

A/N Please review!

I'll be updating soon!


	4. Revealed

* * *

Chapter 4 – Revealed

"How's Stephanie?" Tony asked as Ziva came back into the squadroom.

"Three stitches. She and her mother are staying with Alana's mother," she replied, slinging down her backpack and sitting on her chair.

Tony went and sat on her desk. "Are you alright?"

"I am fine."

Tony eyed her. "Ziva."

"My father and I...don't have the easiest relationship. There are some things he wants to talk about that I don't want to talk about, and vice versa. We don't communicate well."

"You didn't tell him we were engaged?" Tony asked.

Ziva grimaced slightly. "The last time I talked to him I had told him that I was engaged to Chris. They never even got the chance to meet. I wasn't exactly sure how to tell him about you."

"It'll be alright," Tony said. "Things will be fine between you."

Suddenly they heard a door slam. Ziva looked curiously at Tony.

"Gibbs was called up to see the Director."

"Oh."

Gibbs appeared on the catwalk and made his way down to them. Even Tony was smart enough not to make a sarcastic comment about Vance.

"How's Stephanie?" Gibbs asked, giving off the 'don't-ask-me-what-just-happened' vibe.

"Three stitches. She and her mother are staying with Alana's mother," Ziva repeated. Tony grinned and returned to his desk.

Gibbs ran a hand over his face. "Ok, what do we know?" Tony and Ziva scrambled over to the plasma.

"Commander Andrew Rowe, husband to Alana, father to Stephanie," Tony said, making Rowe's photo appear on the screen. "Is the liaison between the Navy and a computer company called Courtaela Technology."

"Courtaela Technology specializes in high-strength security systems. The Navy has a contract with them to use their software to keep all Naval records secure and confidential," Ziva added.

"Bit like that case we had years ago, and that little boy stayed with us...and...getting back on topic," Tony said as Gibbs glared at him. "Rowe was shot in his home, found by neighbour."

"You check out-"

"Neighbour, Emmeline Simms, no record, nothing. Never had anything to do with the Rowe family except being their neighbour," Tony said.

"Alright, so she's pretty much ruled out. You got any other suggestions?" Gibbs said.

McGee came running up to them.

"Boss-"

"Where have you been McGee?"

"Down in forensics. Abby knows what kind of gun was used to shoot Commander Rowe."

"What?"

"23 Glock. Abby's already trying to get a list of owners who could be associated with Rowe."

"Good."

Ziva's mobile rang. "Agent David...yes...good. Thank you." She hung up. "Commander Rowe has just come out of surgery. It was successful. Doctor says he should be awake soon."

"McGee, stay with the Commander. I want his statement as soon as possible," Gibbs instructed.

"Yes Boss."

Ziva's mobile rang again. "Agent David." She pulled it away from her ear and shook it, then put it next to her ear again. "Hello?"

"Who is it?" Tony asked.

"No idea," Ziva said, hanging up. "I keep getting these calls. Caller ID is withheld, and they never say anything."

"Tony, check the phone records."

"Um...alright."

A few hundred keystrokes and errors later, Tony finally managed to bring up Ziva's phone records.

"32 calls from the same number. You recognize it?" Gibbs said, looking at Ziva.

"No."

"Alright. Tony, find out who owns that number. Ziva, we're going back to the scene. See if we missed anything," Gibbs said.

Just as they were getting into the elevator, Gibbs heard Tony yell to him. "Boss? You might wanna see this."

Gibbs and Ziva returned to Tony's desk. "What?"

"Found the name of Ziva's stalker," Tony said, sounding slightly nervous. He pulled the file up on the plasma.

Ziva and Gibbs spoke at the same time. "Oh, crap."

* * *

A/N Please review!!

I have finished writing the rest of this story. Staying up until 2am has its perks!

I'll be updating soon!


	5. Leads And Theories

* * *

Chapter 5 - Leads And Theories

"She's been in there for half and hour Boss," Tony said, pointing to the ladies' room.

"Well, then, go see her," Gibbs replied.

Tony gulped. "While it is kind of alright for Ziva to go into the mens' room on occasion, it is really wrong for any guy to go into the ladies' room at any time."  
"DiNozzo, make a choice. Either go see your fiancée, or wait until she comes out."

Tony thought for a moment.

* * *

"Ziva?" Tony whispered as he opened the door slightly. Peeking inside, he saw that no-one else was in there.

"Ziva? It's me. Where are you?"

"Over here," he heard her reply. He found her sitting against the wall behind the last stall, eating ice cream out of the container.

"That's not exactly hygienic, Ziva" he said.

"According to many American movies, this is what people do when they are upset," she said, stabbing her spoon into the container and setting it aside.

"Wanna talk about it?" he said as he slid down next to her.

"Talk about what? The fact that my stalker is my ex-fiancé who got released from jail early?" Ziva said, blotting her face with a wad of paper towel.

"I'll make sure Chris doesn't come near you," Tony said, putting his arm around her.

Ziva laughed for a second. "Thanks."

"So this is what the ladies' room looks like," Tony said, looking around with a big goofy grin on his face.

Ziva punched him in the arm. "Let's get out of here before you get any bright ideas."

"Like what?" Tony said sarcastically. They stood up and returned to the squadroom.

* * *

"Got a lead on the case," Gibbs said when they took their places at their desks. "Got a call from Commander Rowe's unit at Courtaela Technology. Apparently they have been having issues with people hacking through their software."

"Only a major computer nerd could do that," Tony said, earning himself a glare from Gibbs.

"So whoever shot Commander Rowe probably wanted his password to get complete access to the personnel database," Ziva said.

Gibbs eyed her. "You alright?"

"I am fine," she said, but Gibbs continued to watch her. "Alright, I'm not. I don't exactly like the idea of Chris coming back. He was only in jail for two and half years."

"You'll be fine," Tony said. Ziva smiled at him.

Gibbs broke the moment. "You two find anyone who has the skills to hack through the program."

"Boss, we have no idea who we are looking for."

"Find someone," Gibbs replied shortly.

"On it."

Hours passed, and they didn't come up with anything.

McGee entered the squadroom.

"You get Commander Rowe's statement?" Gibbs asked, finishing his Chinese food.

"He couldn't remember anything except sitting the in the lounge room with Stephanie and hearing someone behind him," McGee said. "You guys come up with anything?"

"I have a stalker," Ziva said.

McGee looked at her strangely. Tony filled him in on the Chris situation.

"Oh," was all that McGee could say. Tony then told him about their 'someone wants access to the Naval personnel records and needs Rowe's password' theory.

The elevator doors opened. "Ziva?"

Ziva looked over to who was calling her. "_Aba_?"

Kemuel walked over to the windows. "Come here."  
Ziva got up slowly and went over to her father. The rest of the team watched curiously.

* * *

"_Aba,_ I am trying to work. What do you want now?" Ziva said angrily.

"Are you pregnant?" Kemuel asked.

Ziva was stunned. "Why do you ask that?"

"It would explain why you became engaged to Agent DiNozzo," he replied simply.

"Tony? I got engaged to him because I love him," Ziva said, still surprised by his question.

"Why are you shocked by me asking if you are pregnant?" Kemuel asked, leaning against the window slightly.

"Because it's a ridiculous question!"

"You don't like the idea of being pregnant? You have not yet discussed it with your future husband?"

"_Aba_!" Ziva said. She wasn't exactly angry; she was embarrassed more than anything.

"What?"

"Well...no, we haven't discussed it. We aren't even married yet. It's not important," Ziva said.

Kemuel looked slightly smug. "Ah."

"How about I promise that I will tell you when I am pregnant. That way I will be the one to tell you and you won't have to rely on your workers to tell you," Ziva said.

Kemuel eyed her suspiciously. "There is something you wish to talk to me about, isn't there?"

Ziva glared at him. "Tali was-"

"Enough." Kemuel fiddled with his coat buttons slightly. "I will be staying at Mossad Headquarters for another week," he informed her, starting to walk back to the elevator.

"Great. Enjoy your time there," Ziva replied sarcastically, walking back to her desk.

* * *

"No offence, but your dad scares me," Tony said as Ziva came back to them.

She remained silent. Should she and Tony have discussed having a family before now?

"Boss, I found something," McGee said from over at his desk.

"What?"

"A terrorist group here in Washington somehow gained access to the personnel database a week ago and sold the accessed files to Al Kaeda."

"Great. Terrorists selling information. That's all we need now," Tony said. Everyone turned to look at him. "Well, think about it. First we were just dealing with an ordinary case, but then we have to add Deputy Director David coming to check on Ziva and Christopher Wells being released and turning into a stalker and now we have to deal with terrorists? Not cool."

Ziva nodded in agreement.

"McGee, go talk to the Intel Analysts. See if they have picked up anything," Gibbs instructed. McGee scuttled off. "DiNozzo, Ziva, go home. It's late."

"It's only just 2200-"

"Go."

Tony and Ziva grabbed their things and headed to the elevator.

* * *

A/N Please review!! I love reviews.

I have a new thing where I will update every three days or when I get at least 6 reviews. :)

I'm having issues with my word processing program. Glarn.


	6. The Gang

* * *

Chapter 6 – The Gang

"Ziva? You alright?" Tony asked as he packed up the dinner dishes.

Ziva snapped out of her thoughts. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you barely touched your food," Tony replied, gesturing to all of her leftover pasta.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm just a bit distracted."

Tony led her to the couch. "Distracted by what?"

"Something my father said."

"Ziva, you don't have to listen to him-"

"No, actually, Tony, he said something that is important."

"Like what? You shouldn't marry me because I'm not Jewish or because-"

"He asked whether we had discussed having a family."

Tony was quiet for a moment. "A family?"

"Having our own kids. He asked if I was pregnant, and if that was why we got engaged. Don't worry," she said quickly, noticing his expression. "I set him straight."

"Good."

"Tony?"

"Yeah?"

Ziva looked at him seriously. "Should we discuss it? Having our own family one day?"

"Well-"

"Seriously."

Tony looked at her. "Sure. One day. Not now though. And not straight after wfe get married. But maybe after a few years, yeah, we can have kids."

Ziva put her head on his shoulder. She started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Tony asked.

"Who would have thought eight years ago when we first met that we were going to be getting married and discussing having our own children."

Tony laughed as well. "Ha. I agree."

Just as they were falling asleep later, Ziva suddenly thought of something.

"Tony?"

"Hmph?"

"We are not naming any of our children after James Bond or Magnum."

"Damn."

* * *

The next morning Ziva went out on her run, which she hadn't done that past few days. She loved going past her favourite park. She often went there to think of relax.

She turned her last corner and ran straight into someone.

"Oh sorry, I-" She froze.

"Hi Ziva."

Ziva remained rooted on the spot. "Chris?"

He smiled. "I knew I'd find you here, you always used to run this route. I missed you the last few days though."

"What do you want? Why do you keep calling me?" Ziva said, still unable to move.

"I want you! We're soulmates, Ziva. We're meant to be together."

Ziva was stunned. "Chris, do you remember that we broke up?"

"That was all a misunderstanding-"

"You cheated on me! With Polly!"

"I didn't mean to-"

"Chris, stop calling me. Stop following me. I'm not going back to you," Ziva said. She tried to step around him, but he moved in front of her.

"You're with that DiNozzo guy, right?"

"Yes, I am, now move." Ziva pushed him out of the way.

He grabbed her wrist as he fell, taking her down with him. They struggled, Ziva regretting teaching him self-defence when they were together.

Finally, she managed to break free. She ran off, still able to hear him call out her name.

* * *

"Abby, are you sure this is necessary?" Ziva asked later, sitting in Abby's lab. Abby was dabbing her face with antiseptic and applying band-aids to her small skin abrasions.

"I can't cover your black eye, but I think I've done everything else alright," Abby said, holding up a mirror so Ziva could see herself.

"I'm fine, really. It's not the first time I've had a black eye. It's not that bad," Ziva said as Abby began putting away her supplies. "If anything, I don't think Chris got off any easier."

"You should tell Gibbs," Abby said.

"Tell Gibbs what?" Gibbs said as he walked in, followed closely by Tony and McGee.

Ziva turned to face them.

"Oh my God. What happened?" Tony said.

"I am fine. It doesn't hurt much," Ziva replied.

"Answer the question, Ziva. What happened?" Gibbs asked.

"I went for my morning run. I ran into Chris."

"As in stalker Chris?" McGee said.

"Yeah. He kept saying stuff about how he and I are soulmates and are meant to be together. I pushed him out of the way, and we ending up fighting," Ziva explained.

Tony ran a finger over her bruise. "Looks like it should hurt."

"The swelling looks worse than it feels," Ziva said, standing up. "Really. I am fine."

"You've said that so many times now that it has lost all meaning," Abby said.

Ziva looked at Gibbs. "Any leads on the case?"

Gibbs knew that she wasn't going to let a stalker bother her. "The Intel Analysts have detected an increase in chatter among a known group who supports Al Qaeda. We're about to go and check it out."

"Good. Let's go," Ziva said, but Gibbs stopped her.

"You stay here. Write up an incident report."

"I did," Ziva said, picking up her report from Abby's desk. "I can't stay here."

"Why?" McGee asked.

"With the risk that my father could come in at any time and see this?" she said, pointing at her eye. "I'd rather be out working."

Gibbs nodded. "Alright. Let's go."

* * *

"Ha. Remember that time we went to check out _La Vida Mala_?" Ziva said as the pulled up outside a restaurant downtown.

"Shut up," McGee said.

"McGee was being 'Macho Man'," Ziva explained to Tony.

"Ah yes. The Probie trying to-"

"You three done?" Gibbs said. They all fell silent.

"Alright, when we get in there, show them the photo," Gibbs said, giving them each a photograph. It was a picture of the Rowe family standing in their busy street. "Any glimmer of recognition, bring 'em in."

Inside the restaurant there was about forty people, all sitting around talking.

"Wow. They even look like _La Vida Mala_," McGee whispered to Ziva. She elbowed him.

"Special Agents Gibbs, DiNozzo, David and McGee," Gibbs said, displaying his badge for everyone to see. "Who's in charge?"

Everyone seemed to look towards a guy sitting at the middle table. "You?" Gibbs asked him.

The guy just shrugged.

"Got a name?" Gibbs asked as the other agents began circulating, showing everyone the photo.

"Dominic Romano," the guy replied. "Call me Romano."

"Alright, Romano," Gibbs said, pulling out the photo and sounding slightly sarcastic. "Seen any of these people before?"

Romano looked at the picture. "So what if I have?"

"Look, dirtbag, we know that your little group here sells Navy personnel records to Al Qaeda-"

"If you know that, where is your proof, huh?" Romano replied smugly.

"He is so guilty," Tony whispered to Ziva. "But he has a point."

"Have you seen these people?" Gibbs asked forcefully, thrusting thfe photo in Romano's face again.

"She approached me. She wanted to know if I had the password for this guys' program," he said.

"Alana Rowe asked you for information about her husbands work?" McGee asked as he, Tony and Ziva walked over.

"Not her," Romano said, pointing at Alana. "Her."

Gibbs looked where he was now pointing. The others leaned in to look.

"Boss, that's Emmeline Simms."

* * *

A/N Please review!!


	7. Dream

A/N Sorry for the kind of slow update.

Enjoy!

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Chapter 7 - Dream

"Emmeline Simms, neighbour of the Rowe family," Tony said, making her picture appear on the plasma. They were back in the squadroom, working with their new development. Romano was down in interrogation.

"Ex-IT teacher at Georgetown University, now runs an online business selling...scarves," Ziva added.

"Scarves?" McGee asked.

"It says scarves," Ziva said, checking her notes. "Is there a problem with that?"

"No...just seems a bit random."  
"Getting back to the case..." Gibbs said, glaring at McGee.

"Right. Um, Emmeline apparently disappeared the day after we left the Rowe residence."

"So she's running from us," Ziva said.

"It all fits. She used to specialize in computers. She could be the one hacking through Rowe's program. She needed his password, he wouldn't give it to her, she shot him," Tony said.

"Yeah, but why would she need access to the personnel database in the first place? And why would she approach Romano about it?" Gibbs asked. "McGee, pull up her personal history."

"Emmeline Simms was married to Lyle Simms, with one son, Derek. Husband is now dead and son has been missing for three years."

"Pull up Lyle's file."

McGee did as he was told.

"Lyle Simms was an alias. He was originally Roberto Lincennzo," Ziva read. "Italian."

"Could have been a member of Romano's group. Explains why Emmeline approached them," Tony said.

"But why would she have needed the information in the first place?"

"Let's go ask Romano," Gibbs said, walking down to interrogation.

* * *

"Hey, when can I get out of here?" Romano asked when Gibbs and McGee entered the interrogation room.

"You can leave when we've sorted this out," Gibbs said, taking his seat. McGee stood in the corner.

"Sorted what-"

"How do you know Emmeline Simms?" Gibbs asked.

Romano was silent for a moment. "I never said I-"

"How do you know her?!" Gibbs said loudly.

Romano remained silent.

"Alright, ever heard of Lyle Simms?"

"Or maybe you know him better as Roberto Lincennzo," McGee said, placing a photo of Lyle in front of Romano.

"Linny," Romano said quietly. He looked at Gibbs. "He was my best friend."

"What happened to him?"

"Killed in Iraq two years ago. He was a Marine," Romano said, regaining his composure.

"What about his son? Derek?"

"He was a Marine as well. Missing in Iraq for three years. Never found no trace of him. Linny never spoke about his boy after he went missing. Most reckon he's dead. Linny went back to Iraq to try and find him and ended up getting blown up."

"Why did Emmeline come to you to ask about Navy personnel records?" Gibbs asked.

Romano could tell this wasn't going to end well, especially if he withheld information. "Emmy came to me because she knew we had had some temporary access to the records. She wanted to know how we got them."

"Why?"

"She never said."

"What did you tell her?"

"I told her I knew of a guy who was working on the software."

"Commander Rowe?"

"Yeah, him. Emmy said that he was her neighbour, and that she didn't know that he was in charge of the software. That's the last I heard from her."

"When was that?"

"About a month ago."

Gibbs stood up and left the room with McGee.

* * *

"We have to find Emmeline. Now," Gibbs said when the whole team was assembled in the squadroom again.

"Checking credit cards and phone records now," McGee said, tapping away on his keyboard.

"I'll contact family and friends," Tony said.

Ziva began to say something, but Gibbs stopped her. "You go home."

"Why?"

Gibbs just glared at her. She picked up her things and walked out.

* * *

When Ziva got home she got straight into the shower. She was absolutely exhausted. Her father was exhausting. Chris was exhausting. And now she was beginning to feel all of her bruises from when Chris attacked her.

Her father refused to talk to her about Tali. Tali's death was the main reason that Ziva didn't get on with Kemuel. Maybe if he would just listen to what she said about it, things could be different.

She hated the way things had ended between her and Chris. She never even said goodbye. He went to jail and they hadn't spoken since.

She was happy with Tony though. Happier than she had ever been. But Chris was still on her mind.

Getting out of the shower, she put on her pajamas and went into the bedroom. She was so tired...

_Ziva was unpacking boxes in her brand new apartment in Miami. She ran outside to get the last of her things when she ran straight into someone._

"_Oh, sorry! I didn't mean too," she said as she composed herself. The guy took off his sunglasses._

"_You must be the new person in the building. I heard you were moving in soon" he said. He put out his hand. "I'm Chris."_

"_Ziva," she replied, shaking his hand._

"_Me and a group of people from the building are going out tonight. Wanna join us? You would get to meet everyone here," Chris offered._

_Ziva considered it. Meeting new people would be good. And Chris was very cute. "Sure."_

The dream changed...

"_Chris, would you just tell me where we are going? It's nearly midnight," Ziva laughed as they ran down the street._

"_We're nearly there," he replied. They stopped._

"_Here? Why are we here?" Ziva asked. Chris led her inside the jewelery store that was beside them. Inside there were staff members, all smiling at them._

_When they reached the middle of the room, Chris stood in front of her. "Ziva, the time that I have known you has been the best of my life. You make me so happy."_

"_Oh my God," Ziva said softly._

_Chris looked directly into her eyes. "Will you marry me?"_

_Ziva felt like her heart was going to burst from her chest. "Yes! Chris! I will marry you!" she squealed, jumping into his arms. He spun her around._

_They spent the next hour choosing a ring, eventually settling on a small simple diamond._

"_Oh Ziva, we are going to be so happy," Chris whispered into her ear as he slipped the ring onto her finger._

"_I know," she said, leaning in to kiss him._

"Ziva?" a voice exclaimed loudly. Ziva woke immediately. Tony was standing before her, looking furious.

"Tony!" she said.

"What are you doing?" he asked, as if trying to contain what he was feeling.

"What do you mean?" Ziva asked, confused.

"I came in here to find you sleeping, talking about being happy with Chris," Tony said, his voice cracking slightly.

_Oh no,_ Ziva thought. "Tony, I can explain-"

"Don't," Tony said, walking out, slamming the door behind him.

* * *

A/N OH NO!!

I might not be updating as fast as I usually do next week. Working. Sad.

Please review!!


	8. Confession

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Chapter 8 - Confession

Ziva walked into the squadroom to find the rest of the team already there. After Tony had walked out, she had spent the rest of the night sitting on the bed, waiting for him to return. He didn't.

She hadn't slept at all, and it showed.

"Morning Ziva," Gibbs said as she sat down. Tony avoided looking at her. He was hurt. He came home to find her talking about being happy with some other guy. Not exactly what he had wanted.

Ziva watched him for a minute, but gave up. "Has Emmeline been found?"

"Yeah, she was staying at a hotel about two hours away. LEOs are bringing her in now," McGee explained.

Ziva looked at her fiancé again. "Tony-"

"Don't, Ziva. Just don't," he said quietly.

Ziva was beginning to lose it when the elevator doors opened.

"Here we go again," McGee said.

Kemuel walked up to Ziva's desk. "Ziva-"

"What?" Ziva snapped, sounding much ruder than she had intended to.

Kemuel was taken aback slightly. "Don't take that tone with me, Ziva."  
"I'll do whatever I damn well want to, _Aba_," she replied nastily. The rest of the team watched as Ziva began to unravel.

"What is wrong with you?" Kemuel asked.

Ziva laughed slightly. "What do you care? It's not like you'll talk to me about it."

"I came here to talk to you. I will talk to you."

"Alright. Good. Everyone hear that? My father is going to talk to me," Ziva said loudly. "Let's talk about Tali."

Kemuel became angry. "No, Ziva."

"Ha!" she said. "You know what, I'm going to talk about her anyway. I am sick of you either changing the subject of stopping the conversation every time her name comes up. Let's talk about how she died, shall we?"

"Ziva, no-"

"My father-" Ziva said, facing her team, "-said that Tali should be the one who would do night patrol down one of the most dangerous streets. As much as me and my brother protested, he still sent her. Isn't that right, _Aba_?"

Kemuel was staring at his shoes.

"Three hours after Tali left, _Aba_ finally sent me to bring Tali back to headquarters. I got there just in time to see the street explode. I found Tali and watched her bleed out. I watched her die. He killed her," Ziva finished, pointing at her father. "If he hadn't been trying to show off how capable Tali was to the other Mossad members, my sister would still be alive. Him and his stupid pride."

There was silence for a moment, the only sound coming from Ziva's heavy breathing.

Tony was stunned. He had never seen Ziva lose it like this before. McGee looked shocked as well, and while Gibbs looked unexpressive, he did feel sorry for Ziva.

Ziva walked up to Tony's desk. "You should have let me explain last night. But no. What is with men and their pride?!" she said loudly. She picked up her bag and headed for the elevator.

After she was gone, Gibbs looked at Kemuel. "That true?"

"Yes," he replied. "And I regret it dearly."

"Why do you keep coming back to see Ziva here?" Tony asked, trying to distract himself.

Kemuel swallowed. Gibbs thought of something.

"You want things to be different. You never really knew your youngest daughter, and you did nothing for your son but train him. You want Ziva to be your daughter."

"Yes. Is that a crime?" Kemuel asked.

Gibbs stood up and walked up to Kemuel, speaking quietly.

"For her to accept you again, you have to give her a reason to."

Gibbs could see he was in emotional pain. Kemuel went to the elevator and left.

"Boss...Kemuel's son...Ziva's brother...it was Ari, wasn't it?" McGee asked tentatively.

Gibbs thought for a moment. They were going to find out eventually. "Half-brother."

Tony and McGee both gasped quietly.

The elevator doors opened again. "Agent Gibbs?" called the police officer as he walked in, holding Emmeline Simms by her handcuffs.

"Let's finish this," Gibbs said.

* * *

For the first time in a while to whole team (minus Ziva) went into interrogation at the same time.

Emmeline looked frightened.

"Wanna tell us why you wanted access to the Navy's personnel records?" Gibbs asked.

"I just-"

"We know you contacted Dominic Romano. We also know that your husband was involved in Romano's group, and that 'Lyle Simms' was just an alias."

"You know about Linny?" Emmeline said, tears starting to run down her face." And Derek?"

"Missing for three years," Gibbs said, looking at his notepad.

"Linny went back to Iraq to try and find him. We just wanted our boy back," Emmeline said.

"And then Linny was killed," Gibbs said. "What did you do then?"

"I had to find my son. After a while I went to see Romano. I knew he could help me."

"He gave you the details of the person who had the password that you needed. Commander Andrew Rowe," Gibbs said, placing his photo in front of her.

"I just wanted my son back," Emmeline said, tears now flowing freely.

"You approached Commander Rowe about the password, and he became suspicious of you."

"Yes."

"You went over to his house one morning and shot him, using a 23 Glock, your husband's old gun. Our forensic scientist traced it back to him," McGee said.

"Why did you need the personnel records?" Gibbs asked.

"I just wanted to find anything that could lead to Derek," Emmeline said. "I wasn't sure exactly what I was looking for, but I thought I might find something."

"How would you like me to explain to Alana and Stephanie that you nearly killed their loved one so you could attempt to find something leading to your son?" Gibbs asked quietly. Emmeline continued to cry silently. Gibbs motioned for the other two to follow him out of the room.

* * *

"McGee, find out what happened to Derek. Anything," Gibbs said as McGee began to protest.

"On it."

"DiNozzo," Gibbs said, standing in front of his Senior Field Agent.

"Yes Boss."

"Get Ziva in here."

Tony picked up his phone and dialled her number.

* * *

Hours later, Tony had had no luck on finding Ziva, but McGee was very excited.

"Boss, I think I have something."

"You think?"

"Derek went missing as he was visiting a village over in Iraq. Two years after he disappeared, reports came in about a non-Iraqi living in that very same village."

"Living there?"

"Married with a baby," McGee said, showing Gibbs the files.

"McGee, you are on this. Go up to MTAC and get a feed into the base over there. Find out if it's our guy," Gibbs said.

Once McGee was gone, Gibbs turned to Tony. "You find her yet?"

"She's not answering her mobile or the home phone. I can't find her," Tony said worriedly.

"Think. Is there anywhere she would go to be alone or to think..."

Tony thought for a moment.

"Green's Park. About three miles from our place. She runs past there when she does her circuit in the morning."

"Go get her," Gibbs said. Tony grabbed his things and ran to the elevator.

* * *

McGee ran back down to the squadroom an hour later.

"Boss! A team just went into the home of the non-Iraqi and his family. It's Derek. He said that he went UA so he could be with his wife and baby."

"Case closed. Go tell Emmeline," Gibbs replied.

* * *

Ziva was sitting on the edge of the lake, watching the ripples move across the water.

She had snapped. She was angry with her father and Tony. She couldn't think of anyone that she could turn to.

After a while, a voice behind her broke the silence. "Ziva?"

She turned around. "Chris?"

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A/N --insert dramatic music here--

Please review!!


	9. Perfect

A/N This chapter is for Elle, mainly because she wanted me to publish it :)

This was one of the hardest chapters to write.

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Chapter 9 - Perfect

"What are you doing here?" Ziva said, standing up. She didn't have her gun with her. Or any of her knives.

"I wanted to see you," Chris replied.

"Why?"

"I love you, Ziva. We're soulmates. Every day that I was in prison I thought of nothing but you. We're meant to be together."

_Mental issues_, Ziva thought. "Chris, I'm with someone else now. Don't you understand that? I am engaged to Tony."

"I wish you hadn't said that, Ziva," Chris said, walking closer to her. Ziva could see him pull a gun from his belt.

"What are you doing?"

"If I can't have you, no-one can. We're meant to be together, Ziva," he said, sounding almost deranged.

"Put the gun away," Ziva said as he pointed it at her.

She could tell she was seconds away from death. She swung her leg out, knocking him off balance, his shot going into the sky. He fought back, gun still in hand, wrestling with her on the ground.

Seconds later, they fell into the icy waters of the lake. It was at least five metres deep, and they both fell directly to the bottom.

Chris still had the gun in his hand. He pulled the trigger just as Ziva was behind him. He slipped, and the shot fired directly through his chest and into her thigh.

Pain hit her. She desperately needed air. Ziva looked over at Chris.

He was dead.

When she finally hit the surface, she saw that she wasn't very close to the edge.

Surrounded by the freezing water, and unable to swim with her wound, Ziva went back down into the depths.

* * *

Tony pulled up in the carpark, taking his time turning off the headlights and taking out the keys. He wasn't looking forward to this.

As he walked down the path, he remembered what Ziva had said the first time she had brought him here.

"_I come here to the lake sometimes, to escape. Somehow, being there helps me think."_

Tony approached the lake's edge. Shining his torch around, he couldn't see anybody.

The beam of light passed over the water.

He saw it.

Ziva's white jacket.

The one she had been wearing that day.

Underwater.

Except it wasn't just her jacket.

It was her.

Without even thinking, Tony threw his cell out of his pocked and jumped into the water.

Her face was pearly white, and her eyes were closed. A small amount of blood was coming from her leg.

Grabbing her around the waist, Tony took her back to the surface.

Once they were on solid ground, Tony began CPR.

"1, 2, 3...come on Ziva," he said desperately. He searched frantically for his phone.

"_991, what is your emergency?"_

Tony filled in the operator with the details as quickly as he could and went back to doing CPR.

Finally Ziva coughed and spluttered and opened her eyes.

"_Tony," _she breathed. He held her close and waited for the paramedics to arrive.

* * *

"What the hell happened?" Gibbs said as he entered the emergency room. Tony was sitting in the waiting area.

"The doctors are checking her out now," he said. "They're pretty sure she has hypothermia."

"What happened at the park?"

Tony told Gibbs what had happened.

"So Chris is dead?" Gibbs said.

"Yeah. The crew got him out of the water fairly quickly."

"Family of Ziva David?" a nurse called.

Gibbs pushed Tony forward. "I'll see her later. You go."

The nurse led Tony down a corridor. "The doctors have finished assessing Ziva's condition. They're pretty sure she'll be alright in a few days," she said. "You can see her now, she's awake," she added once they came to Ziva's room.

"Thank you," Tony replied as he walked in alone.

Ziva was staring at the window, and was surprised when Tony said next to her on the bed. "Hi."

"Hi."

Ziva looked at him. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I should have tried harder to explain to you about Chris. I just didn't like the way things ended between us. That's all. I don't love him. I love you."  
Tony smiled slightly. "It's alright. You've had a lot on your mind recently."

"Is-"

"Kemuel is still at Mossad Headquarters. He said he will stay there until the end of the week, and wants to know if you are alright. He also asked me to tell you that he is sorry."

"For what?"

"For everything."

Ziva sighed. "That would have been a very hard thing for him to do."

"Yeah."

They were silent again, but Ziva could tell Tony had something on his mind.

"I didn't tell you about Ari because it isn't something I am particularly proud of."

"It's okay."

"Hey Tony?"

"Yeah?"

Ziva looked at him again. "We should get married sooner."

Tony grinned. "How much sooner?"

"Soon after I get out of here."

Tony considered. "Sounds perfect."

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A/N Please please please review!! I love feedback.


	10. Epilogue

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Chapter 10 – Epilogue

_One month later_...

"That was such a nice wedding," Abby said, sipping her glass of wine. They were at the reception hall.

"Yeah," Gibbs said. Abby continued to stare at him. "No, Abby. I will not dance with you again."

"But Gibbs-"

"The first four times were enough for me. Take McGee out again," Gibbs said as McGee sat down.

"He said he's too tired," Abby said grumpily.

"We've been dancing since we got here!" McGee said.

"Tony and Ziva don't seem to be having any trouble," Abby said, pointing at the couple on the dancefloor.

Tony and Ziva had organized their wedding as soon as Ziva was discharged from hospital. They had decided on an outdoor ceremony, with the reception at a local hotel.

Ziva had finally decided on a dress – strapless, small hoop floor-length skirt and a side zipper. Tony wore the usual suit and bow-tie.

The song ended, and Tony and Ziva went over to Abby, McGee and Gibbs.

"Finally they finish!" McGee said.

Ziva smiled. "Dancing is great fun. You should try it McGee."

"Dancing with your wife is much more fun," Tony said, grabbing Ziva's hand and twirling her around. Laughing, Ziva elbowed him and went to her table.

Tony went to follow her but Gibbs grabbed his wrist.

"Boss?"

Gibbs looked at him. "Congratulations, Tony."

Tony smiled. "Thanks Boss." He turned and went over to Ziva.

"I think they are going to be very happy," Abby said, still watching McGee.

"Alright. Fine. I cave. Let's go," he said, leading her away. Gibbs stayed at the table, watching his team.

"This is great," Tony said as he sat down next to Ziva.

"I know," Ziva agreed. Tony kissed her on the hand.

"Ready to dance again, Mrs DiNozzo?"

Ziva was about to reply when silence fell over the room. "What's going on?"

"No idea."

Kemuel David was standing next to Gibbs at his table, holding a glass of champagne in the air.

"Did you know he was coming?" Ziva asked Tony quietly. They had sent Kemuel and invitation to the wedding, mostly as a piece offering from Ziva, but they hadn't seen him during the ceremony.

"Still no idea."

"As father of the bride, I wish to make a toast," Kemuel said loudly. People began raising their glasses. Tony and Ziva slowly followed suit.

"I haven't known Tony a long time, but I do know that he will make my daughter happy," Kemuel said. "I wish Ziva and Tony the best of luck, as I am sure everyone else here does," he continued, gesturing to the other hundred or so guests. "To Tony and Ziva!"

"To Tony and Ziva," everyone echoed, and they all drank to the couple.

As soon as the noise had died down again, Ziva stood up and made her way down to her father. Tony remained at the front, not quite sure what his wife was about to do.

Ziva stood in front of Kemuel for a moment, before stepping forward and putting her arms around him. He followed suit.

"I am sorry, Ziva," he murmured.

"Same," she replied. They pulled apart after a moment.

Gibbs stood up and started clapping. Within seconds everyone joined in.

Tony held his arms apart and beckoned for Ziva to come to him. They hugged, laughing, beginning their lives together as Tony and Ziva DiNozzo.

The End.

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A/N Please review!!

I really enjoyed writing this story.

Thanks to all my faithful reviewers.

Thanks to C-Bear for being very tolerating of my constant 'Do you think this would be a good idea?'

Until next story,

PJ630


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